Even if you’ve never made homemade bread or worked with yeast before, this homemade crusty artisan bread is for you. It’s the perfect beginner recipe because it only requires 4 ingredients without any special pans or mixer, there’s no kneading or complicated shaping involved, and 95% of the work is hands-off. Bread masters will appreciate this recipe too because it delivers with delicious flavor, a slightly crisp and mega chewy crust, and those signature soft holes inside like ciabatta or French bread.
Bread Beginners—Start Here
Have you ever wanted to master homemade bread? Real, crusty, chewy, delicious bakery-style loaves that taste incredible with dips, soups, sauces, and comforting dinners? This recipe is where you start. This artisan bread is for beginners, but even bread masters will appreciate its flavor and ease. It’s so fresh, so flavorful, and so surprisingly easy because it basically makes itself.
You only need 4 ingredients without any special pans or mixer, there’s no kneading, no poolish or dough starter required, and you can add herbs, cheeses, and spices to make a variety of bread flavors.
This base recipe will soon be on repeat in your kitchen. After you realize how easy it is to make real homemade bread, you’ll find any excuse to bake a loaf.
What is Homemade Artisan Bread?
When it comes to bread, the term “artisan” doesn’t mean 1 particular thing. But generally, artisan bread is homemade, fresh, crusty, and deliciously rustic looking. An artisan is a skilled worker, one who works with their hands. But ironically, there isn’t much “work” involved with this recipe.
Why You’ll Love This Bread
- Easier than you ever imagined
- Soft + flavorful
- Chewy, slightly crisp crust
- Shape however you want
- No special pans, poolish, or dough starter required
- Only 4 ingredients
- You decide the length of time it rests
Homemade Artisan Bread Video Tutorial
Like sandwich bread, whole wheat bread, focaccia, homemade English muffins, seeded oat bread, and homemade bagels—the process is surprisingly easy. If you’re new to yeast, reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
Only 4 Ingredients
The crustier and chewier the bread, the less fat in the dough—also known as a “lean dough.” We’re using a lean dough for our artisan loaf today. (If you’re curious, a “rich dough” is a soft bread dough with the presence of fat, such as butter and eggs—the kind we need for overnight cinnamon rolls and honey butter rolls.) Without fat, we’re left with the basics.
- Bread Flour: While you can use all-purpose flour in this recipe, I strongly recommend using bread flour. Just like when we make olive bread, bread flour produces a stronger, chewier bread and that makes a big difference in recipe with only 3 other ingredients.
- Instant Yeast: Instant yeast is key in this recipe. While you can use active dry if that’s all you have, any quick rise or instant yeast will produce flavorful results in less time. I use more yeast in this recipe compared to my cranberry nut no-knead bread and no-knead jalapeño cheddar bread. Why? Those doughs rest and rise at room temperature. However, for more flavor and just as much rise, I use more yeast and let the this dough rest in the refrigerator. (Cool air slows the fermentation process.)
- Salt: You can’t make good bread without salt and for best flavor, I recommend a coarse salt, such as coarse sea salt. I find the bread’s flavor lacking with regular table salt.
- Water: I normally encourage you to use warm liquid with yeast because warm liquid helps the yeast work faster. However, use cool or room temperature water here. Not freezing cold, not super warm—cool to touch. 70°F (21°C) is great, but the exact temperature doesn’t matter as long as it’s not hot or warm. The cooler the water, the longer the dough takes to rise and, usually, the better the bread’s flavor. (This is important since there are so little ingredients to add substantial flavor!) We use the same cool water method for no knead honey oat bread.
- Optional Cornmeal: Dusting the pan with cornmeal adds a pop of flavor and a little crunch to the bottom crust. This is completely optional. If you have it, use it. If you don’t have it, don’t worry about it.
You can also add herbs and seasonings such as garlic, rosemary, dill, chopped onion, jalapeño, shredded cheese, chopped nuts, dried cranberries, etc. My no yeast bread is the quick bread alternative here—you can add flavors to that loaf, too!
Baker’s Tip: Avoid adding too much flour to the dough as you work with it. The stickier it is—and the longer it sits in the refrigerator—the more likely you’ll have those big airy pockets of air in the crumb.
How to Make Homemade Artisan Bread in 5 Steps
- Mix the dough ingredients together. At first the dough will seem very dry and shaggy and you’ll question if it will even come together. But it will. Use a spatula at first, then switch to your hands to ensure all of the flour is moistened. The dough is actually a little sticky after it’s thoroughly mixed.
- Let it rise at room temperature for 2-3 hours. Cover the dough and let it rise at room temperature for about 2-3 hours until doubled in size.
- Use right away or refrigerate. After 2-3 hours, you can immediately continue with the next step. However, for ideal flavor and texture, I strongly recommend letting the dough sit in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours and up to 3 days. Yes, 3 full days! I usually only let it rest for about 18 hours. During this crucial step, the cold air slows the fermentation process and adds so much flavor and texture. So, you can bake bread in 2-3 hours or in 3 days. The longer it sits, the better it tastes. 🙂
- Shape into 2 loaves or 1 boule. Rest as oven preheats. You can shape the bread into a round loaf (boule) or two longer loaves. I usually make 2 longer loaves side-by-side on a flat baking sheet, about 9×3 inches each. Score with a sharp knife or bread lame. Preheat the oven to a very hot 475°F (246°C). The extremely hot air will immediately set the crust so the bread rises up instead of spreading all over. To help ensure a crispier crust, after the oven pre-heats—pour boiling water into a metal or cast iron baking pan/dish on the bottom oven rack. Immediately place the dough inside and shut the oven door to trap the steam. The steam will help create that coveted crisp crust. If you have a dutch oven, shape the dough into 1 round loaf, and bake it inside the dutch oven with the lid on.
- Bake until golden brown, about 20-25 minutes. Gently tap the loaves because if they sound hollow, they’re done.
Look at those deliciously soft holes inside! Reminds me of ciabatta or a French baguette, both of which can be a little more complicated to make.
Serve Artisan Bread With
- Slather with homemade honey butter
- Slice and dunk in crab dip, beer cheese dip, or roasted garlic bacon spinach dip
- Serve alongside slow cooker chicken chili or pumpkin chili
- As a dunker for minestrone soup, creamy chicken noodle soup, or crab soup
- With a big bowl of mac & cheese
- Use for my goat cheese & honey crostini
- It’s the perfect starch in breakfast casserole
- With anything because homemade bread is everything’s best friend
See Your Homemade Artisan Bread!
Many readers tried this recipe as part of a baking challenge! Feel free to email or share your recipe photos with us on social media. 🙂
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Homemade Artisan Bread Recipe
- Prep Time: 4 hours
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 4 hours, 25 minutes
- Yield: 2 8-inch loaves
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Even if you’ve never made homemade bread or worked with yeast before, this homemade artisan bread is for you. Watch the video tutorial below and review the recipe instructions and recipe notes prior to beginning. If you’re new to working with yeast, reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
Ingredients
- 3 and 1/4 cups (about 430g) bread flour (spooned & leveled), plus more for hands and pan
- 2 teaspoons (about 6g) instant yeast
- 2 teaspoons (about 9g) coarse salt (see note)
- 1 and 1/2 cups (360ml) water, close to room temperature at about 70°F (21°C)
- optional: cornmeal for dusting pan
Instructions
- In a large un-greased mixing bowl, whisk the flour, yeast, and salt together. Pour in the water and gently mix together with a silicone spatula or wooden spoon. The dough will seem dry and shaggy, but keep working it until all the flour is moistened. If needed, use your hands (as I do in the video tutorial below) to work the dough ingredients together. The dough will be sticky. Shape into a ball in the bowl as best you can.
- Keeping the dough in the bowl, cover the dough tightly with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and set on the counter at room temperature (honestly any normal room temperature is fine!). Allow to rise for 2-3 hours. The dough will just about double in size, stick to the sides of the bowl, and have a lot of air bubbles.
- You can continue with step 4 immediately, but for absolute best flavor and texture, I strongly recommend letting this risen dough rest in the refrigerator for at least 12 hours and up to 3 days. Place covered dough in the refrigerator for 12 hours – 3 days. I usually let it rest in the refrigerator for about 18 hours. The dough will puff up during this time, but may begin to deflate after 2 days. That’s fine and normal—nothing to worry about.
- Lightly dust a large nonstick baking sheet (with or without rims and make sure it’s nonstick) with flour and/or cornmeal. Turn the cold dough out onto a floured work surface. Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut dough in half. Some air bubbles will deflate as you work with it. Place dough halves on prepared baking sheet. Using floured hands, shape into 2 long loaves about 9×3 inches each (doesn’t have to be exact) about 3 inches apart. Loosely cover and allow to rest for 45 minutes. You will bake the dough on this prepared baking sheet.
- During this 45 minutes, preheat the oven to 475°F (246°C).
- When ready to bake, using a very sharp knife or bread lame (some even use kitchen shears), score the bread loaves with 3 slashes, about 1/2 inch deep. (“Score” = shallow cut.) If the shaped loaves flattened out during the 45 minutes, use floured hands to narrow them out along the sides again.
- Optional for a slightly crispier crust: After the oven is preheated and bread is scored, place a shallow metal or cast iron baking pan or skillet (I usually use a metal 9×13-inch baking pan) on the bottom oven rack. Carefully and quickly pour 3-4 cups of boiling water into it. Place the scored dough/baking pan on a higher rack and quickly shut the oven, trapping the steam inside. The steam helps create a crispier crust.
- Place the shaped and scored dough (on the flour/cornmeal dusted pan) in the preheated oven on the center rack. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Gently tap the loaves—if they sound hollow, the bread is done. For a more accurate test of doneness, the bread is done when an instant read thermometer inserted in the center reads 195°F (90°C).
- Remove the bread from the oven and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes before slicing and serving. Store leftovers loosely covered at room temperature for up to 5 days or in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: The dough can sit in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, so this is a wonderful recipe to begin ahead of time. You can also bake the bread, allow it to cool, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature before serving. You can also freeze the dough. Complete the recipe through step 3. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in a freezer-friendly container. To bake, allow dough to thaw overnight in the refrigerator, or for 2-3 hours at room temperature. Continue with step 4 and the rest of the recipe instructions.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowls | Silicone Spatula or Wooden Spoon | Baking Sheets | 2-cup Measuring Cup | Bread Lame | Instant Read Thermometer
- Flour: For absolute best flavor and chewy texture, I strongly recommend using bread flour. You can use a 1:1 substitution of all-purpose flour in a pinch with no other changes to the recipe. I recommend avoiding whole wheat flour in this dough. If necessary, use half bread flour and half whole wheat flour. The bread will taste a bit dense.
- Yeast: You can use instant or active dry yeast, but I highly recommend an instant (aka “rapid rise” or “quick rise” yeast). The bread will rise faster. I usually use Platinum yeast by Red Star, which is an instant yeast. 2 teaspoons is a little less than 1 standard packet. If using active dry yeast, there are no changes needed to the recipe. The rise time in step 2 may take longer.
- Salt: Use a coarse salt, such as coarse sea salt, in this bread. I find the flavor slightly lacking when using regular table fine salt. If you only have fine salt, reduce to 1 and 1/2 teaspoons.
- Water: Use cool water. 70°F (21°C) is great, but the exact temperature doesn’t matter as long as it’s not hot or warm.
- Round Loaf: If you want to shape the dough into a boule (round loaf) simply shape into a round ball instead of 2 loaves in step 4. Baking instructions are the same, but the loaf will take a few extra minutes in the oven. If you want to bake the boule in a dutch oven, see next note.
- Using a Dutch Oven: Follow this dough recipe through step 3, then follow the simple shaping/baking instructions (steps 2-5) in my Cranberry Nut No Knead Bread recipe including using the parchment paper. If your parchment paper can’t withstand heat this high, you can either lower the oven temperature and bake the bread for longer or grease the Dutch oven instead.
- Using a pizza stone: If you want to bake your bread loaves on a pizza stone, place pizza stone in the preheating oven. In step 8, place the shaped and scored dough on your preheated pizza stone. If the bottom of the shaped dough is pretty sticky, dust the hot pizza stone with some extra cornmeal. Bake as directed.
- No Nonstick Pan: If you don’t have a nonstick baking sheet, line it with parchment paper instead. Coat with a dusting of flour and/or cornmeal before placing the dough on top. Parchment paper can burn, so it’s best to check the box to see how much heat yours can tolerate. Lower your oven heat if necessary and bake the bread for longer until golden brown and when gently tapped, sound hollow.
- Flavor ideas: Before pouring in the water in step 1, add any of the following ingredients/combination of ingredients to the dry ingredients in the bowl: 4 cloves minced garlic + 3 Tablespoons chopped rosemary, 3 Tablespoons your favorite fresh herb (chopped), 1 cup your favorite shredded cheese, a diced jalapeño, 3/4 – 1 cup dried cranberries and/or chopped nuts, 2 teaspoons garlic powder, etc.
- Reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
- Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour & Red Star Yeast, similar method originally from Jim Lahey.
Do you have a calorie break down and other nutrient facts? These recipe was great I just want to track my info
Hi Bill, We don’t usually include nutrition information as it can vary between different brands of the same ingredients. Plus, many recipes have ingredient substitutions or optional ingredients listed. However, there are many handy online calculators where you can plug in and customize your exact ingredients/brands. Readers have found this one especially helpful: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076
Hi!! The taste is great, the thing is the crust went soft after cooling. How did it happen?
Hi Iris, how was the inside of the bread? It sounds like the loaf could have used a few additional minutes in the oven. Did you use the optional steam bath in step 7? That will also help guarantee a crispier crust. Hope this helps for next time!
Hello,
I am doing something wrong… I have tried making your recipe twice and each time the bread came out REALLY dense.
First try I went the route of baking 3 hours after letting it rise.
Second try I went the route of 3 hours room temp and then in the fridge for 12 hours.
I am 100% certain I followed the recipe exactly, what could be wrong?
Thank you for your time.
Hi Jason, every loaf will turn out differently, some with more holes than others. Make sure to handle the dough very carefully to prevent compressing the air bubbles. Be sure to also spoon and level your flour (or use a kitchen scale) to ensure it’s not over measured, which can make the bread dry and dense. Hope this helps for next time!
This bread is so good it’s dangerous! I love every recipe I have made from Sally and I am thrilled how easy this recipe is. I love that it is perfectly salted, soft inside and had a crisp exterior. Thank you, Sally- you make my taste buds sing!
This is the first time leaving a comment but I’m compelled as I take my beautiful loaf out of the oven….. For the hundredth time!!! I’m making this bread every two to three days. Perfect every time. I’ve even figured out how to modify it slightly to use my milled wheat berries when I’m feeling in the mood for some wheat bread. I always weigh and over night proof in the frig. I have the measurements memorized and can put this dough together in minutes. It has taught me how to work with a wetter stickier dough but well worth it for these amazing results. I’ve used Sally’s recipes before ( big fan of the pie crust) but like I said, this one called for a shout out!
I’ve followed the recipe to the precise measurements 3 times now. But every time my dough is sloppy and sticky! It does turn out nice. But when I put in the baking tray it spreads like goo and so I have a massive flat loaf! What am I doing wrong?
Hi Laura, this is a very wet dough. There are a lot of variables that can go into the consistency of dough, down to even the weather/humidity. If you find your dough is especially wet/loose, you can certainly add more flour (1 Tablespoon at a time) until the dough comes into a workable consistency. Hope this helps!
Before I try this recipe please can you confirm your measurements are correct coz 1 cup bread flour is 120 gms so 3 1/4 cups will be 390 gms not 430 gms. Thank you.
Hi MF, what brand are you using? We usually use King Arthur brand, which says it’s 120g/1 cup. When we weigh 1 cup (spooned and leveled), it’s closer to 130g and that is what we use. We slightly rounded it up here, because you usually need a little more flour.
Looking forward to trying this recipe! If I wanted to make 3 loaves, could I just multiply the recipe by 1.5? Thanks!
Hi Vivian, for best results, we recommend making separate batches rather than multiplying. You could always freeze any extra dough or the baked bread.
My oven only goes up to 230 c, do you have any recommendation for baking time?
Hi Feline, you can bake at a lower temperature, knowing that the bake time will be a bit longer. Keep a close eye on it and you can use an instant-read thermometer to test for doneness.
Love it. I use the base of this and add different spices. Works to perfection every time.
In the past I have tried baking a loaf of bread in my Instant Pot. It worked, though it was not a masterpiece! My IP is my most used kitchen tool. I am tempted to try your recipe in the same way. Any predictions as to how it might come out?
Hi Barry, we haven’t tried this recipe using an instant pot, but let us know how it turns out if you do!
I made this using 50/50 white and wheat flour, and a heaping T of brown sugar. After two hours of proofing it was lifting the glass lid off the bowl. The dough easily tripled in size. I formed two loaves, scored the tops, and baked for 20 min. When I pulled them out I could see that I did not score deeply enough, and the bread was bursting out on the sides. I’ll cut deeper next time.
So easy and tasty! Love it! Going into my favorites!
This recipe is spectacular. Carefully followed instructions. Left in refrigerator just shy of 24 hrs. Filled pan w/ boiling water. Crunch crispy, perfect inside texture. Thank you Sally for giving me the courage & inspiration to bake bread. No longer intimidated by yeast.
I totally love you recipes and for the bread yes I will make
Hello Sally, Thank you so very much for this fantastic recipe! I made it yesterday and the loaves turned out so well. I will definitely make it again.
Just made this recipe. Half i left in the fridge and cooked the other. Such amazing crust and love the density of this recipe. Lots of nice air bubbles. Will be using this as my go to. Thanks so much!
I was honestly skeptical about how this would turn out. I didn’t have bread flour or instant yeast (so used all-purpose and active) and otherwise followed to the letter (including the extra steam-bath) and it turned out beautifully. It was in the fridge for about 40 hours after the first rise. I was afraid of bread for the longest time. I love knowing I can make something so satisfying so simply!
I’m sorry but did not like at all. I made half of loaf after 4 hours and am making other half now, which is 24 hours later. BUt I noticed this calls for 2 tsp. Of yeast and my other 4 ingredient bread calls for 3 cups flour and 1/2 tsp. of yeast, whereas this has 3 1/2 c flour and 2 tsp. of
yeast. Quite a difference.
Hi,
I absolutely love this recipe and have made several times.
I was curious of your thoughts on adding chocolate chips? To make it a sweeter type bread.
Hi Crystal, we haven’t tested it, but you certainly could try it. Let us know if you give it a go!
Thanks so much for your reply! I definitely will give it a try soon and let you know how it worked out.
I love this bread! I have to try adding more flour though because my dough (every time I’ve made it) has been very sticky. I guess I’ll try a tablespoon at a time.
My go to bread recipe. It’s so good, every time. I’ve made it several times with all-purpose flour when I am out of bread flour and I find I need to use slightly less water for it to hold its shape. However even when I followed the water amount in the recipe while using all-purpose, the taste was good it just looked like a very flat loaf.
Love love this bread. It is so easy to throw together in the morning and have fresh bread for dinner.
Your recipe values don’t make any sense to me. I’m new to baking, but if you use 430g flour and 360g water, that’s 84% hydration- I can’t get dough at 70% to hold it’s shape, I wouldn’t even try the numbers in this recipe. I don’t know how you could dough at all like in your picture or video with that much water to flour. Are those actual weight values you used?
Hi MC, this is a wet dough, using an adapted version the technique developed by Jim Lahey – more on that in the recipe notes. Let us know if you give this dough a try!
I just made this for the first time last week and it was the first bread I’ve ever made. Everyone loved it and now I’ve made it 5 times in a week! Last night I decided to use half the batch for pizza dough and it was perfect for that too!
I love this bread so much
I loved this bread so much! My only issue is that it didn’t bake with air holes in the middle, it’s soft but slightly dense, any suggestions?
Hi Samantha, every loaf will turn out differently, some with more holes than others. Make sure to handle the dough very carefully to prevent compressing the air bubbles. Be sure to also spoon and level your flour (or use a kitchen scale) to ensure it’s not over measured, which can make the bread dry and dense. Hope this helps for next time!
Sally I always use your pizza dough recipe and came across this bread. I am by no means a baker or even a cook, but I do love to eat Italian food. This bread was perfect for Sunday gravy and a leftover sausage sandwich on Monday. Thank you for sharing your recipes. I will keep following and cooking!
This recipe was phenomenal! Would there be an easy way to convert the loaves into dough balls for individual rolls? Just slice and tuck the end but bake at same temp and bake until hollow? (Do dinner rolls take around 20min as well?)
Hi Kathleen, You can make smaller rolls, yes. Bake time will depend on the size you make them. Bake until the crust is golden brown and when you tap the loaves they sound hollow. Or, here is our dinner rolls recipe.